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Thursday, October 9, 2008

2 New Flyovers For CTE

Source : The Straits Times, Oct 9, 2008

Elevated roads will separate traffic going in and out of highway.

TWO new pairs of flyovers will be built along the most congested stretches of the Central Expressway (CTE).

When all is done by 2011, 7.5km of the CTE from Bukit Timah to Yio Chu Kang will have four lanes each direction - up from three today. -- PHOTO: COURTESY LTA

The Land Transport Authority said on Thursday one flyover will allow northbound motorists from the Pan-Island Expressway (PIE) to continue their journey on the CTE without competing with those taking the Braddell exit.

The proximity of the PIE entry and Braddell exit has long been a thorn in the side of CTE users.

Another flyover will offer motorists north of Braddell an uninterrupted link to the exit leading to Changi and Serangoon. With that, the bottleneck faced by motorists entering the CTE from Braddell should be eased.

The flyovers are part of the mammoth CTE-widening project, which will take up to end-2011 to complete. Widening between Ang Mo Kio Ave 1 and 3, started in June and is due for completion some time next year.

It costs about $17 million. Tenders will be called soon for another four stages of widening, which include the pair of flyovers.

When all is done by 2011, 7.5km of the CTE from Bukit Timah to Yio Chu Kang will have four lanes in each direction.

LTA chief executive Yam Ah Mee on Thursday said the expansion is expected to cut travelling time by 15 per cent on either direction.

Mr Yam said it is not in the interest of the public to estimate how much the remaining widening works will cost as it might influence bids for the tenders.

However, going by the cost of the widening project between Ang Mo Kio Ave 1 and 3 (a 1.5km stretch), the sum could be more than $70 million.

Works are expected to start next February, and will involve minor acquisitions of state land.

Punggol resident Sam Chong, 46, said the two flyovers are 'very good steps'.

'The problem has always been the exits to Braddell and the PIE,' the chief executive of a private telecomms-linked company said. 'Cars filtering causes the slowdown.'

The project will have one downside for some Potong Pasir residents, though. It will bring the highway closer to flats just before the St Andrew's Village.

At the closest point, the road will be only 12m away, from 15m to 16m now.

Mr Yam said LTA will plant thick foliage along the stretch to cut down on noise and dust. He claimed that planting is a better option to erecting sound barriers, which are common in countries like Japan, Australia and Europe.